Emmanuel Ogar|8 May 2016|5:36am
One of our foremost nationalists, Sir Herbert Macaulay, in his wisdom opined that, “no question is settled until it is settled right”. The sacrilegious incident that transpired at the Governor's Office, Calabar in a purported peace accord meeting to broker truce between the Kutia and Ukwortung might have come and gone; but the shocking revelation of the government and the concomitant actions of the Kutia leaves us with baffling questions begging for answers. These questions should not only be answered, but it should be answered rightly.
An injustice perpetrated against one is an injustice against all and sundry. Whatever that touches the eyes equally affect the nose. A government that knows how to dispense injustice and carries out vendetta in a callous manner; a government that tramples upon the rights of the minority is a government that takes delight in robbing Peter to pay Paul because Peter has no people in government or belong to a major group within the area; that government is the one in power in our state, Cross River State. The minority, the Ukwortung people are now the vivid victim of the democratic venom controlled by Prof. Ben Ayade.
April 26th, 2016 remains an unforgettable day in the history of the Ukwortung Chiefs and the entire Ukwortung race. It was a day that sons and daughters of the land will live to remember. The day their Chiefs were led like the sacrificial lambs to the Governor’s Office for them to be stripped naked, beaten, drilled and frog-jumped.
Before they were beaten, they were made to sign a peace accord. Surprisingly, just a day after the truce was signed, the Kutia people went straight into the compounds of late Mr. Gabriel Awu Ukem and late Mr. Patrick Egbo Adadu in Atiabang to hew down a Gmelina tree, and carried the timbers away. It may interest the world to know that in 2010, these same people burnt down these men’s houses. What was their aim? Their intention was to perhaps trigger war.
Fortunately, the said people that the agent of government alleged that they sounded like people who did not desire peace remained calm amidst such infringement. They did not confront their invaders with arms as other would have done, rather they went to Obudu main town Police station to register their complaint to the Divisional Crime Officer, DCO. What did the police do? Nothing. Too bad!
Many have read in various quarters concerning the swift denial by the government that the Chiefs were not ill-treated. Of a truth, the government is not sincere at all to flagrantly repudiate their barbaric action. It is absolutely amazing that the government could be so callous to refute a glaring truth when the facts on this matter are no longer in dispute.
Here are some few questions demanding answers: In the penultimate general elections, didn’t the governor (Ayade) and his party win overwhelmingly in Ukwortung polling unit?
Had he (Ayade) not won there; it would have been that the people naturally hated him becoming a governor, so Ayade could have claimed that the people are telling lies against him based on that reason. How elderly men (Chiefs) could peddle falsehoods against the governor who by extension is their son and the State Security Adviser for ordering mobile police to treat them like slaves and common criminals?
Why Ayade would now denied that he did not consent to the beating of the Chiefs when his foot soldier (SSA) has clearly confirmed their misdeed in a story in CrossRiverWatch?
Why such lies were not told against Mr. Donald and Senator Liyel Imoke, if Ayade is claiming that the chiefs of Ukwortung are telling lies against him?
Hear him:
“To the best of my knowledge, no one was beaten or asked to do frog jump. We invited all the leaders that their people are fighting and made it clear to them that war has never and will never solve any problem. We had useful deliberations and we made it clear to them that government will hold them responsible if there is breakdown of law and order in their various communities.
“After then, they were asked to go and write undertaking and they went and did that. I have no knowledge that anyone was beaten. However, if any of the Chiefs misbehaves and instigates crisis in their domains, this government will not spare them. They will be held responsible and they will even do more than that frog jump”. He said.
Let it be on notice that at about 11:30 PM to 12 midnight on December 31st, 2010, it was gathered that some hoodlums allegedly to have come from Kutia invaded Atiabang and brought down a new building which was completely built to a roofing point. They after, proceeded to raze another houses that belonged to the late Patrick and Gabriel. Afterward, shooting started and the both Chiefs of the warring communities were apprehended and remanded in Calabar Police custody for about 100 days. When they were eventually released, they did not go out to accuse the then governor, Sen. Liyel Imoke or Mr. Rekpene of maltreating them apart from being detained to calm down tension.
If Ukwortung Chiefs did not falsely alleged that neither Imoke nor Rekpene violated their human rights by stripping them naked; frog jumping them; though, Imoke is an Abi man, why would they do that to Ayade who is an Obudu man like themselves if he has not done it indirectly? Were we not told that blood is thicker than water?
Since the SSA has come out in public announcement in CRBC that the state never invited any Chief from Obudu to come and be punished, by that act, it clearly shows that the SSA and Ayade do not have regards for traditional Chiefs and her institutions.
In the same meeting before the chiefs were taken to be maltreated, Mr. Jude Ngaji was expressly told by the Ukwortung representatives that the so-called demarcation which he the SSA alleged that Ukwortung worked against was an arbitrary imposition by the dominant Bette people; and it was set aside by the Federal Court of Appeal sitting in Calabar, hence the so-called demarcation does not exist since it has been expunged by the Appeal Court.
The Chiefs are complaining that the actions and utterances of the SSA against them did show that he was biased and probably acting a script. At this point, does one need the services of a soothsayer to know that the Chiefs were just being led like sacrificial lambs to the slaughter? No sir!
According to the Clan Head, HRH Moses Odikpo, “Mr. Jude Ngaji comes from a family with a rich background in law and as such, he should have known better that when a matter is before a competent court of jurisdiction, the government must stay clear". These actions, he narrated.
Still on the matter that has now woken the slumbering spirit of the muted, recounting the melodrama that played out on that day, the Chiefs said:
“We couldn’t believe ourselves. We were so surprised that one Bette woman called Agede who is neither from Ukwortung nor Kutia was brought into the meeting to say all manner of unimaginable things against Ukwortung and the SSA was comfortable with it.
"The question is; why was that woman invited to a meeting that was called for only the Ukwortung and Kutia people? Why was she given such an allowance to speak on issue she lacks knowledge of? It was really surprising that the Ukwortung who are in the eye of the storm were merely given scanty chances to talk. Even when we were speaking, we were consistently and intermittently interrupted by the SSA".
“Those who are deliberately supporting Kutia with falsehood because they think they are the dominant people and Ukwortung as well as Utugwang should be eliminated and their lands taken over should come out and tell the world the location of Kakwel-kutia in Obudu. Is the location not near Bebuabie in Obudu where they were driven from by their own Bette brothers and some of them ran to Ukwortung and we sheltered them? They should also have the moral courage to tell the world there are more Kutia in Kukorshie, Bette speaking community in Obudu, as they are tagging Ukwortung people as being troublesome".
“Why is it that they have not gone to Kukorshie to demand for demarcation as they are asking from Ukwortung? The answer is because; they think that Ukwortung is a minority".
“In the meeting, the chairman of Obudu LGA alleged that we did not honour the meeting he convened in Obudu. Maybe he should show us the invitation letter they gave us. If we honour an invitation we heard via radio announcement in Calabar, how would we not attend a meeting of similar issue in Obudu? Can the council secretary, Barr. Ogboika said with a clear conscience before God and man that they extended invitation to us and we refused to honour it?"
It is now clear that the chairman, Hon. Emmanuel Ugbe and Prof. Ben Ayade have completely taken side on this matter. Ukwortung people should continue to embrace the law as they always done as their last hope. The judiciary should be their last resort. Those who claim that Ukwortung land belongs to them should go and present their facts before the court and stop chasing shadow.
I overheard someone wailing thus: “If they think there is no Ukwortung person in government to plead our cause and fight for us, they is one man that will fight for us and has always stand by us before and that man is God, He is a God of the minority”, he cried.
An Islamic scholar, Uthman Dan Fodio said, “Conscience is an open wound which only truth can heal it”. The government should have the courage to own up to the despicable act it committed rather than denying the glaring fact that the Chiefs were not humiliated. They should accept that they have erred. They should just eat the humble pie.
For the law of Karma not to be fulfilled in future, the government should devise special means of appealing to the Chiefs and people of Ukwortung and Utugwang in general for humiliating their chiefs, their ancestors, God of heaven and even the gods of the land of the entire Utugwang race. Already, a section of youths from Ukwortung are demanding for unreserved apology from the government and equally calling for the head of the SSA, Mr. Jude Ngaji to serve as deterrent for other to learn from.
The Ayade government cannot pretend to be people-friendly while at the same time treating some custodians of the culture and traditions of the people with disdain. There is a big danger for an ethnic champion to occupy a sensitive public office like the office of a governor of a state. For now Ayade has shown that he is an ethnic chauvinist, and until he acts otherwise, the public, including some of his tribal men and women on the side of justice sees him as such.
“We have one message for Mr. Jude Ngaji, and the message is that because he came in a radio announcement and called the Ukwortung chiefs and people lairs after their chiefs were humiliated by him and his boss, Ayade, he will not go without humiliation in his life as even his own children will beat him in his old age”, a member of the Ukwortung community stated when I visited the community after embarrassing episode in Calabar.
It is true that those who employ governmental powers and intimidation/coercion to establish falsehood, endeavoring to make it legitimate will always do so but in vain; however the reward of their acts awaits them here and in the hereafter. This is what Ayade government should know.
Comr. Ogar, Emmanuel Oko
Is a friend of the Oppressed, the victimized, abused, downtrodden and the common-man. He coordinates Youths Alliance for Northern Cross River Dreams, YANCRiD and Modern League of Classical Experimental Writers, MLCEW.
